A New Story
by Amriah
Summary: Set after the events of Final Fantasy X2.Tidus and Yuna and the others have been living happily for a year now.Then,there is an unexpected earthquake,followed by a freak tidal wave.When all is calm again,they find a new cavern--and what secrets lie within
1. Prologue: Catching Up On Things

**Prologue**

A gentle, cool breeze rushed onto Tidus's face as he stared out below him, the mountainside sloping down behind him, leading to the small village he called home. He loved this spot. Three years ago, travelers would stop here to pray to Yevon, the accepted and common religion back then. Tidus sighed at the thought of those times. So many mysteries and hidden agendas, false beliefs and lies had spun around in a never ending spiral of death and destruction at the time. Spira had held true to its name- the spiral of agony had seemed to continue on forever, while hope had been fragile and small to its people.

He stood up slowly, taking in the beauty of the day, listening to the birds chirping faintly in the lush forest not too far away. Looking towards the path leading to Besaid Village, memories began to flood through his mind like a river, a constant flow of images before his eyes.

Back then, three years ago, the world had been plagued by an entity called "Sin". Yevon had taught the people that Sin was Spira's punishment for the great machina war, a devastating conflict that cost Spira the lives of many people, including the entire city of Zanarkand, one of the greatest metropolitan areas of its time, almost one thousand years ago. However, the lives of Zanarkand's people were taken by a summoner named Yu Yevon. Yu Yevon took their souls and made them dream forever, thus keeping Zanarkand alive for all eternity, turning them into something called "the fayth". This was his solution to the war, for he knew they would be destroyed by Bevelle's powerful machina. Zanarkand's summoners, even with their magic, were no match for the cold machinery of the flourishing city to the south.

Kicking a small stone down the path, Tidus mulled over his thoughts. His world had been the Dream Zanarkand the fayth, imprisoned by Yu Yevon, had dreamed of for a thousand years. He was nothing more than someone's dream come to life. That had been the beginning of his story, and how his had merged with _hers._

The very thought of Yuna always made Tidus smile. She had been an apprentice summoner when they had first met, here on this very island of Besaid. She had come from Bevelle with Kimahri, her Ronso protector, after High Summoner Braska, her father, had defeated Sin.

Tidus frowned at that thought. Braska had not defeated Sin forever. He had gone on a long and difficult pilgrimage, having traveled to each temple of Yevon and, by communing with the fayth that had been sealed within each statue, obtained their dreams and manifested them into a very real and powerful creature, known as an "aeon", in hopes of bringing peace to his people.

Completing this pilgrimage and defeating Sin would then bring about a time of peace, called the Calm, lasting until Sin is reborn, starting the never ending cycle of death and despair. That Calm had lasted ten years, and Yuna had endeavored to become just like her father, and bring the peace back again. Such was the cycle, and Tidus had chosen to help her in the end, though not entirely willingly at first. After a while, he became a guardian to her, a person who protected her as she went about her pilgrimage. It had been a very educating experience for Tidus, who had matured slowly as the journey progressed, going from whiny and insolent boy, to a slightly more mature and knowledgeable person.

However, at the time Tidus had not known summoners gave their life for their cause at the end of their long trek, earning them the rank of High Summoner after defeating sin by giving up their life to summon the Final Aeon. In fact, for half of his journey with Yuna and her guardian companions, he had remained blissfully unaware of that fact, making comments about a future Yuna would never have. He still kicked himself mentally for that sometimes, for it had caused her pain, though she never admitted it until later.

Unfortunately, that was the only way anyone knew of to defeat Sin at the time. It was a long tradition of sacrifice, of people valiantly giving up themselves for the people's happiness, no matter how short lived. Yuna was, in fact, named after the first of such people; the first High Summoner- Yunalesca. Lady Yunalesca gave up her life to defeat Sin, and her husband Zaon was the first Final Aeon.

At the thought of the Final Aeon, Tidus immediately began to think of his father, the last Final Aeon, and the last Sin. Jecht had given up his life for Braska's cause, for he had been Braska's guardian. He too had been a dream, though he had somehow managed to cross into Spira, and was taken in by Braska. The summoner and his two guardians, the young former Yevon military leader Auron being his other guardian, had defeated Sin. Auron had been the only guardian who remained, to fulfill his promises to both Jecht and Braska to protect their children- Tidus and Yuna.

Thinking of Auron made Tidus smile, as he continued down the path, ambling along lost to his thoughts.

Auron had been a tough one, and Tidus still missed the old man, especially picking on him. Wakka, the amiable blitzball player turned father, only went so far with his sense of humor. He was not exactly the smartest person out of the bunch, and he had his hands full with his little one year old son, Vedina, and his very cynical and harsh wife, Lulu. All of these people had been Yuna's guardians three years ago. There were six of them in all: Auron, Yuna's Al Bhed cousin Rikku, Lulu, Wakka, her childhood protector Kimahri, and Tidus himself.

Tidus recalled member of the guardian team with fondness. Rikku had been the one to find him first after he made his way into Spira through Sin. She was an Al Bhed, which was a race of people who used machina and were hated by the anti-machina people of Yevon. Ironically enough it was Sin that separated them again, and washed him up on Besaid, where he ran into blitzball captain Wakka. Wakka had taken Tidus under his wing after seeing that the boy was a star blitzball player, in hopes of winning the tournament. He promised that he would help Tidus find someone he knew in return, and he did: Auron. But before that, Wakka had introduced him to Lulu, who had not been too receptive of him at first.

Later he ran into Yuna when he went charging into the temple upon hearing that the summoner in there could be in danger. From then on, after Yuna learned that Jecht had been Tidus's father, she wanted to know everything about his Zanarkand, and did not want him to leave. After a while Tidus became her guardian, upon meeting Auron in the blitzball city of Luca, and learning that it was what Jecht had wanted.

Tidus paused in his thinking as his thoughts wandered over Auron again. The old guardian had been with them throughout the entire journey. In fact, he was the one who crossed over into the Dream Zanarkand and sent him to Spira in the first place through Sin. But, Auron had died at the hands of Yunalesca the very day Braska sacrificed himself, and had to finally rest forever.

In Spira, the dead were sent to the Farplane, the very core of Spira itself, by summoners who perform the sending ritual. If they do not do this, the soul will become an unsent, or worse, over time, hatred twists them into a monster known as a fiend. Auron had been such an unsent, and when their battle against Sin was finally over, the old man finally faded away.

Tidus himself should not exist, he thought with some wry amusement as he sped up his pace a bit. He was merely scattered memories the fayth had pieced together again and recollected in Besaid. He was still just a dream, but as long as Yuna thought of him, and cared about him, and he did the same, he would exist. The thought made him very happy.

Walking around the bend of the path, he could see the walls of Besaid Village. The smell of food wafted through the air, and Tidus began to run forward, wanting to go home.

So much had happened during his journey with Yuna. He had been her friend, her guardian, and now her beloved.

They had defeated Yunalesca, who had been an unsent turned into a malicious fiend over the one thousand years since her self sacrifice, upon arriving in Zanarkand. The unsent woman had claimed that there was no other way but to continue down the vicious spiral of agony and death that had enveloped Spira. It was the only way to give the people their small glimmer of hope, Yunalesca had said to them.

Tidus beamed at himself proudly. He had been there supporting Yuna when she had decided to cast aside the false hope of the Final Aeon and find a permanent way of defeating Sin. He had been there when they made their way into Sin itself after realizing that Yu Yevon was the root of it all, the source of their agony. Sin was Yu Yevon, who immortalized himself by attaching himself to the Final Aeon, eventually turning it into Sin, thus rendering the pilgrimage into a never ending cycle of death and sorrow. Tidus had never liked that twist of fate. The very people seeking to give Spira hope were the ones also perpetuating its despair.

In the end, Jecht was the one who was finally defeated, the one who wanted to fade away so he would not have to kill anymore, finally giving him peace. Tidus had been there when Yuna had to destroy her aeons in order for Yu Yevon to have nothing to leech off of. They had been her helpers, her companions, and her friends, and it had pained her to destroy them.

He had been there when they defeated the being that was Yu Yevon, and at least freeing Spira from Sin's destruction and pain. He had faded away after that, having released the fayth from their summoning; from their dreaming that was his reality.

Making it to the village Tidus paused, his thoughts still flowing around him as people ran about doing the daily chores and things that made up their peaceful lives.

After fading away, he remembered nothing, but Yuna had filled him in. Two years had passed while he slept, or rather while he was being pieced together again. In those two years, Spira had realized what it had hoped for so long. There was no more Sin. The Eternal Calm had come at last, and Yuna was the big hero. However, she had wanted nothing more than to make her own way in life.

Tidus laughed mentally to himself. In the end she had just missed him, and wanted to become her own person. Her whole life had been devoted to making her people happy. That had been realized, to an extent.

Things can't stay happy for very long here, Tidus thought to himself in good humor, recalling the story Yuna had told him.

Soon Yevon, now newly formed and renamed New Yevon, and a new faction called The Youth League, which had been created by former Crusaders, people renounced from Yevon as traitors for using the forbidden machina, were at each other's throats.

As things unfolded, it was discovered by Yuna, who had become a spherehunter, which was a treasure hunter of sorts, and her companions Rikku and Paine, that there was a person behind all the angst. His name was Shuyin, and he was simply a soul from one thousand years ago who was full of despair at being unable to save his lover, Lenne, from throwing her life away to try to save Zanarkand.

That had been at the time of the machina war, and Shuyin had wanted to use Bevelle's secret weapon, the ultimate Vegnagun, to destroy the enemy in a desperate attempt to save Lenne, but she had stopped him, saying it was not right. Vegnagun was a very unstable machina, and could hardly distinguish friend from foe. It could have easily destroyed the very people Shuyin had unleashed it to save. Because of her intervention, they both perished in the secret tunnels under Bevelle's sacred temple. Shuyin remained unsent and became a thing so full of despair at being unable to save his beloved Lenne that his despair was burned into the very place itself, and eventually he took over Nooj, the Youth League's leader. From there, he took over New Yevon's leader, Baralai, whom he used to get to Vegnagun. Yuna and friends were able to stop Shuyin from doing that by telling Shuyin Lenne's true feelings.

A year had passed since those events. Shuyin and Lenne were able to rest in peace at last, after one thousand years of suffering alone and separated. Tidus did not think he could have fared any better had he been put in Shuyin's position. In fact, he almost _had_ been put in that position, and never wanted to be put there again.

Walking past the first hut on the right, he turned to the small local shop to his left, wondering if he should get anything for dinner that night, this train of thought successfully interrupting his constant flow of thoughts of the past. Laughing a little to himself, he simply shrugged and decided he should ask Yuna first.

Three years had passed, and it had been his story back then. Yuna had her own story as well, and a good one at that. Now it was their story, and he never wanted it to be any different.

Strolling towards their newly built hut, which was right next to Wakka and Lulu's, he saw Yuna standing outside the door, talking with Lulu. Little Vedina, Lulu's son, tried his hardest to run forward to Tidus, but fell onto his little face. Both Yuna and Lulu laughed lightly, their voices melodically twirling in the air as Lulu bent to pick up her mischievous young son, who was wailing loudly.

Tidus smiled, waving to the two women as they noticed his approach. Yuna beamed at him happily, and he grinned back in return. This was his world now, and he could not have asked for a better one.


	2. Chapter 1: Discovery

**Chapter 1**

Fires were ablaze everywhere. People were screaming for help; children crying for their parents. Tidus looked around him. He was back in Zanarkand, his home.

But what was going on? Everything around him was veiled by thick clouds of smoke, billowing wildly about him.

Suddenly there was a blinding flash, and time stood still. Tidus could see people frozen in mid-run, the fires raging violently within the buildings paused in that single moment.

After what seemed like an eternity, Tidus saw pyreflies, those small bundles of energy swarm before him, and the image of a little boy appeared. He was tan, small, and wearing a shirt that had a hood, which covered his facial features. But Tidus did not need to see them. He knew this boy. He had been the fayth of Bevelle's temple, and by communing with him allowed you to summon the great aeon Bahamut. He had also been the chosen representative of the fayth as a whole, and Tidus had seen the boy on many occasions during his journeys. Seeing him now was a bit of a shock.

"Why are you here?" Tidus demanded, making a swiping motion with his arm.

"You don't know?" If Tidus could have seen the boy's face, he was sure that the kid would have been smiling.

"Apparently not" Tidus replied sarcastically.

The boy walked up to Tidus and looked into his face, dark piercing eyes meeting Tidus's own blue ones. "You will see, for you are still a dream."

"What do you mean by that?" Tidus asked as he looked at the boys face, searching for some sort of answer there. Nothing made sense, and he wanted to ask the boy to stop talking in riddles and give him a straight answer. Instead, the boy vanished before him, pyreflies flowing all around through the air.

"You are not the only dream made real." Tidus heard the words echo around him as time suddenly regained consciousness and began to flow again steadily again, the sounds of panic and fear reverberating through the night…

Tidus woke up suddenly, yelling loudly in a sweating panic.

"Just…a dream" He breathed in relief as Yuna placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" She asked worry showing in her eyes as Tidus smiled.

"I'm fine, really. Go back to sleep Yuna." He said tenderly as she frowned.

"What's wrong? You haven't had a dream that woke up you screaming in a long time." She said, the concern behind her questions clear as day. Tidus loved her for it.

Yuna was such a caring person, willing to sacrifice herself without a moment's pause for someone else's happiness.

Tidus laughed lightly. "It was just a weird dream. Really, nothing more, I promise."

Yuna still looked uncertain but finally laid back down and rolled over on her side, one arm draping over Tidus's chest. After a few minutes of silence, he could hear her steady breathing as she returned to her slumber.

Tidus laid there for a while, staring at the roof of their hut. That dream had meant something. The boy would not have come to him for just any old reason. In fact, each time Tidus saw that boy, hard times ensued.

"I don't like this at all…" He mumbled to himself drowsily as he drifted off into sleep.

Light splashed onto Tidus's face as he jumped up, practically falling out of bed. Their flap of decorated cloth, which served as an entranceway into their small home, was pushed aside, letting the sunlight stream into their household.

"Yo, sleepyhead! Time for practice, ya?" Wakka laughed loudly, throwing a blitzball straight at Tidus's face with alarming accuracy.

Catching the ball, though only barely, Tidus stood up and smiled. "I thought we weren't going to play this year either." He mused with a grin, "After all," Tidus paused, making a funny face "'little Vedina does require a lot of attention, ya?'" He said in low-pitched tone that vaguely sounded like Wakka.

Wakka laughed, a boyish grin splattered across his face, "Well, you know, I wanna win again 'dis year, you know?"

Tidus nodded his agreement. Two years ago they had won the blitzball tournament in the city of Luca. It had been the first time the Besaid Aurochs had brought the Crystal Cup home to Besaid, and they had returned home winners. Wakka had quit then to continue on as Yuna's guardian, but his heart still remained with the game even now.

"Well, I suppose I had better get you guys back in to shape. After all, what are you guys without me?" He said arrogantly as Wakka laughed again, and Tidus could not help but smile. Wakka's carefree attitude and happy ways were highly infectious, and he always found himself relaxed around the blitzball player.

"Here," Yuna said, handing Tidus a large container that was quite warm and smelled delicious, "I made you all lunches so that way I won't have to hear _him_" she jerked her head towards Tidus, "complaining of an empty stomach and then wolfing his food down and getting sick."

Tidus blinked at Yuna, trying to look as innocent as possible. "When do I do that huh?" He asked with a pained tone in his voice.

Yuna laughed, "Don't act like you haven't done it before or I'll---

The earth started shaking violently, cutting off Yuna's statement. Tidus ran over to her quickly, grabbing her hand and shielding her from everything else with his body as the shaking grew worse.

"What's going on?" Yuna screamed over the deafening roar of the ground moving beneath them.

"I don't know!" Tidus yelled back, as he felt things crash around him, something hard crashing into his head.

"It's almost as if—

And then the shaking stopped, and everything was calm.

Forgetting what he was about to say, he quietly helped Yuna to her feet, looking around for Wakka. He mentally sighed with relief as he found Wakka's form huddled by the bed, though the roof of their house had caved in all around him. Tidus groaned mentally at the thought of having to fix that later.

"You okay Wakka?" Tidus asked, still holding Yuna in his arms.

Wakka nodded, standing up slowly, testing the ground shakily.

"T-that was weird, ya?" He stammered, still in shock.

"It's too quiet." Yuna said in a very small voice.

Tidus looked up above him. There was not a cloud in the sky. Everything was so still and calm, almost too calm for his liking. Something was coming.

Before he could make another move, the wind suddenly erupted into a violent tempest, and he clung to Yuna in desperation.

He did not have time to look and see if Wakka was okay. It all happened so quickly. Before he even realized it, water was crushing down on him like a weight.

From there things were rapidly flashing by him. Tidus could feel Yuna slip away from his grasp, and tried to reach out for her but instead hit his head on something hard, and darkness enveloped him.

"Yo sleepyhead, wake up, ya? We got damage repair to do." Tidus heard someone say, almost as if they were miles away from him. He tried to open his eyes, but they felt as if gravity had suddenly forced itself upon him and him alone. Pausing for a moment, gathering some small amount of strength, he tried to open them again. This time he had more luck. Light poured into his senses, and he bravely attempted to open his eyes further. The sky was just as pure blue as it had been before the tidal wave had struck so randomly.

Attempting to move, he winced in slight pain. Nothing felt broken fortunately. His vision clearing, Tidus was able to see the damage. It was massive. He looked behind him. He was leaning up against the Besaid temple, Yuna rushing around everywhere trying to help as many people as possible. He gave her a quick examination from his spot. She did not look like she'd been hurt at all.

"What happened?" Tidus asked, even though he remembered the water pounding down on him.

Wakka sighed and sat down next to Tidus, his face looking a little haggard, "We don't know why it happened, or even what it was, ya?" He replied, looking around in dismay.

Pieces of furniture and small baubles that made up people's households were strewn about everywhere in the village. Not a single hut was still standing. The only thing that had withstood the force of the sudden onslaught of water was the temple, its stone foundation giving it strength. Yevon had known how to build things, Tidus had to give them that much.

Staring as the Besaid Aurochs ran around with newly made planks of wood, Tidus frowned, "How long have I been out?" He asked

Wakka laughed, "A couple days, ya?"

Tidus jumped up, "A couple of days!" He yelled, but he suddenly felt lightheaded, and sat back down quickly.

"You hit your head pretty hard on something sharp apparently. I wouldn't push yourself too far if I were you," A familiar patronizing voice said as Wakka stood up quickly. Lulu, her fiery red eyes gleaming, handed the little sleeping Vedina in her arms to his father. The boy had grown a lot over a year, but still looked so small in Wakka's arms.

Tidus laughed as Wakka clumsily but carefully rocked little Vedina back and forth, a loving gaze in his eyes. "You sure do have this parenting thing down Wakka." He teased as Lulu gave him a scrutinizing look.

"Wakka tries." Was all she said, still glaring at him.

Tidus smiled nervously. Lulu always had been the overbearing cynic of the group, but she meant well, and everyone knew that. "R-right. I know Lulu." He stammered as Wakka laughed at him.

Lulu, satisfied that her child was in safe hands, went to go help Yuna carry some small trinkets for the elderly couple living there.

Tidus sighed with relief. Lulu was a scary person at times.

Wakka, handling little Vedina with care, looked Tidus up and down, "You sure you're okay to help out, ya?"

Tidus grinned, and jumped up once, regretting it as second later when the world started to spin. Managing not to look like a complete idiot, Tidus grinned again a little sheepishly at Wakka, who was smiling in amusement. "I think I'll be okay after a little while."

Wakka laughed and pointed towards the path to the beach, "Go down there and see if anything went out at the beach, ya? Who knows, maybe we could salvage some things. I haven't checked the pier yet." He explained, groaning. If the pier was gone, they'd have to build another one, and that was something neither Wakka nor Tidus was looking forward to.

Tidus groaned as well at that thought. "I'll go check. Let's just hope there's still something left of it." He said, slowly beginning to walk forward.

With each step the world began to spin, making Tidus unsure if he really was okay. Then, once he got to Yuna, the world stopped spinning, and he was just happy she was okay.

Yuna hugged him and smiled, "Glad you're awake you sleepyhead. You've been missing out on all the fun," She joked, and Tidus grinned. She always tried to remain so optimistic, which was something he loved about her.

"I get to go have my own fun down by the beach, want to join?" He offered, hoping she would come. Doing things with Yuna always made time go faster.

Yuna looked to Lulu, who was busy gathering up people's possessions. The tall woman looked up at the couple and nodded her permission. With that, Yuna grabbed hold of Tidus's hand and dashed off towards the beach, practically dragging him along in a dizzy haze.

"Whoa, whoa, hey! Slow down!" He pleaded as Yuna stopped suddenly.

The world began to stop spinning, and Tidus put his hands on his knees and just sort of squatted there for a moment.

"Oops, sorry." Yuna said a little sheepishly.

Tidus laughed, "It's okay, I just need to catch my breath."

Yuna giggled once and sat down next to him, "You know, _you_ used to have to drag _me_ along, remember?" She stated, looking straight in front of her towards the trees lining the path.

Tidus, his hands still on his knees, laughed once and nodded, "Yeah but you've changed Yuna. You've become your own person." He said, looking up at the sky, and stretched once.

Yuna only nodded once and stood up, "Ready?" She asked as a smile lit her face.

Tidus, who was no longer dizzy, grinned and nodded. Grabbing her hand, the two of them started walking up the path again.

They started past Tidus's favorite spot, and both looked down into the small village below. It looked so different now. The huts and tents were gone now, and only wreckage and scurrying people remained. Tidus thought it reminded him of an anthill after a mean kid had stepped on it.

Looking at Yuna, Tidus could tell she was thinking the same thing. Tugging her along, they continued down the path towards the old machina ruins, which led to the beach. Neither of them really spoke. They didn't need words to enjoy the other's company, and the silence was not in any way uncomfortable. Tidus always loved to enjoy the beauty of Besaid. He considered it his own tropical paradise, or at least the closest thing to it.

Looking up at the tall rusted metal tower that hovered over the path before him, he could not help but think about his dream. What had the little boy meant?

"No sense worrying over a dream." Tidus mumbled to himself, shaking his head a bit.

"What was that?" Yuna asked, turning towards him with raised eyebrows.

Tidus laughed, scratching the back of his head, "It was nothing, don't worry about it."

Yuna frowned, but looked forward again saying nothing, but picked up the pace, causing him to fall behind.

Tidus sighed in relief, and jogged a bit to catch up to her. There was no sense in worrying her over a dream that meant nothing. Or at least he hoped meant nothing. Grabbing her hand again, he grinned boyishly at her. They crossed over a bridge, the roaring waterfall spraying mist all around them.

Yuna sighed, "I hope the pier is okay,"

Tidus only nodded, knowing that it was more of a statement than a conversation starter.

After a moment, Yuna sighed again, "I received a summons yesterday." She said slowly.

Tidus stared at her, trying to keep walking at the same time. "Oh, what was it for?"

Yuna smiled uneasily, "You were out for two days you know," She paused, taking a deep breath, "Apparently the fiends have been going out of control. No one knows why, but the Calm Lands have been under a lot of stress. That became a sort of gaming spot, very popular with the tourists, remember?" She said and Tidus smiled.

"Well, when do we go help them?" He asked cheerfully as Yuna stared.

"I didn't know if you would want to help." She admitted shyly and Tidus laughed.

"Don't you remember? I was always the one dragging you and everyone else into trouble to help out other people." He laughed and Yuna joined in.

"You're right. This means you get to spend more time with Rikku and Paine!" Yuna said happily.

Tidus nodded in agreement with excitement. He had not seen Rikku in a long time. She had gone with the Al Bhed, her people, to go rebuild their Home. Last he had heard from her and her father, Yuna's uncle Cid, they had decided to rebuild it near the excavation site they had set up to look for machine parts. Now there was the Machine Faction, led by the Al Bhed Gippal. So, the Al Bhed who wanted to return to their Home could, and the ones who wanted to stay could do that as well. Tidus thought it was a nice compromise.

As for Paine, she had gone on to be a recorder for New Yevon and the Youth League, and even worked as a fighter for hire from time to time. Tidus had never really gotten to know her, since she had joined Yuna's sphere hunting team, the Gullwings, during the two years he was gone. He had met her upon his return, but she left soon after that.

The made the bend in the path, and Tidus could hear the sounds of the waves making their way up to the shoreline.

"Race you!" Tidus hollered as he started running, Yuna quickly catching up to him.

As they made it to the beach, they both stopped short. The pier was not even there, and everything was thrown about.

Tidus sighed. "Let's see what we can salvage," He said, patting Yuna on the shoulder as he walked forward earnestly.

As he walked to the other side of the beach, he noticed something reflecting sunlight in the sand. Bending down, he picked up a piece of polished silver, with a strange drawing on it. Another flicker of light caught his eye as he looked up. Right in front of him on the opposite side of the shore was a cove, now partially destroyed. It had always been there, away from prying eyes. Only now it was plainly obvious, and there was something there catching the sunlight as well.

"Hey Yuna!" He called, whistling to get her attention.

He smiled at that inside knowledge of theirs. He had made a promise to her long ago. If she ever needed anything, she just had to whistle, and he would come running. Yuna had also made that promise to him, and it always made him smile.

Yuna bounded over to him, cutting through the water for good measure. She looked at him curiously once she got to him, and all he did was hand her the polished piece of silver and point to the once secret cove.

After staring at the piece of silver for a moment, she looked at the cove, the flickering of light catching her eye as well. Then she looked back to Tidus, who grinned. A moment later they were both dashing towards the little secret place, water splashing everywhere. They had to swim once they got too deep, and Tidus felt his clothes weigh him down, his chain hitting his neck with each stroke.

Yuna was the one who reached the cove first, since she cheated and shoved Tidus back into the water once they reached the shallow water. Laughing in good humor, Tidus sloshed up beside her, his clothes dripping.

His laughing died away in a second though, when he saw the large metallic looking plate, hanging above a doorway. It looked like it could be opened, and it looked old. The metal had lost most of its luster, and was rusting away. But who made it? How long had it been there?

Before Tidus could think about any more Yuna touched the edge of the metal plate hanging above the doorway, looked back at the silver piece in her hand, and then placed that on the end. There was a click, and a massive amount of shaking, making Tidus wonder if this doorway had anything to do with what happened. The doorway creaked to life, and slowly opened.

Yuna looked to Tidus, excitement sparkling in her eyes. He nodded, and walked in before her. Despite her newfound confidence and freedom, he still did not want her to hesitate should anything happen.

It was not as dark as Tidus thought it was going to be. Small glowing symbols flickered everywhere, not unlike the ones in the temples of Spira. Was there a connection somehow? Maybe there was an unknown fayth down here.

Yuna grasped Tidus's hand, and he squeezed it reassuringly. Mentally kicking himself for not thinking to bring the word Wakka had given him three years ago, the Brotherhood, he sighed quietly. He just hoped there were no fiends down here that were too much for him to handle without a weapon.

Keeping a hand on the wall for guidance, Tidus walked cautiously down the path. There were no other branches, it was a straight walkway, tall enough for two of him to fit on top of each other and still not touch the roofing. Tidus wondered who built this place and why.

The light started gradually increasing, and the symbols seemed to dart around on the walls as if they had a life of their own.

Yuna watched them, trying to figure out if she knew any of the symbols. Tidus could tell by the confused look on her face that she did not.

Finally, they rounded a turn, and then finally, the light practically illuminated every corner.

Tidus and Yuna both stared in amazement. There in front of them was a circular chamber, the symbols practically jumping off of the chamber walls. In the center was a small pedestal, almost identical to the ones that had been in the Yevon temples' Cloister of Trials, the test that a summoner and her guardians must go through to be able to commune with the fayth. On that pedestal there were two nooks that looked as if they could fit two spheres. One was empty, but the other had a glowing red sphere that seemed to pulse as if it had its own heartbeat.

Tidus motioned for Yuna to stay by his side and walked carefully to the sphere. As they got closer, Tidus could feel heat emanating from the little orb. Slowly reaching the pedestal, he places his hands on it, and stared at the sphere. It had more symbols dancing on it than the entire room did, and this perplexed him.

Carefully, he picked up the sphere, the heat warming his hand through his glove. He looked around. All spheres had a purpose, maybe this one did too.

But before he could make another move, there was a blinding light, and a force of wind pushed him and Yuna away from the pedestal with amazing strength.

Scrambling up, he tried to look forward, but the light was too strong and he had to shield his eyes. Grabbing Yuna's hand and helping her to her feet, he held her close as the light grew brighter and brighter and the room started to shake. Energy crackled from the center of the sphere, sending sparks of raw power everywhere.

Finally the light faded, and both Tidus and Yuna were shocked.

There before them was a young woman curled up into a ball…


End file.
